[beerab]

Pizza is nothing to me but grease and carbs. I find also if I eat lots of sodium I don't lose weight either...

You could ask for a grilled chicken breast instead of a chicken sandwhich. Also does your campus have more than one place to eat? Mine did and I'd check out all the other places to eat on campus cuz they all had their own healthy options

[midwife]

Originally Posted by SusanB

I'm going to off on a tangent here ... and it's mostly my thinking so anybody can jump in and say what they think, please.
I think there are several stages to weight loss. In the begining we cut back our food and start moving more and the fat begins to melt. As we draw closer to a thin, fit weight ... the minutiae of nutrients and macronutrients becomes more pertinent because we are working on a smaller frame in order to build a sturdy network of bone, muscle and healthy fat.
When we hear fitness gurus extolling the importance of 40/40/20% and circuits and intervals, it is good, it is noteworthy but I think it's like an advanced class.

Is this coming out very clearly?

Training like an athlete is not a different process ... it's just several stages away from losing the first five pounds. I don't think the stages are exclusive. Lots of folks start by running, cutting back fats and adding protein. And I don't think the same tweaks work the same for all people. I eat way less carbs than a lot of folks do.

Totally my experience as well, Susan. I started out calorie counting and running for weight loss but I found that what I ate was as important as how much I ate. I think the best point of all is that we don't have to have it figured out right out of the gate but we can tweak and improve as we try different things.

300 calories of Chef Boyardee is not going to do the same thing for my body as 300 calories of salmon, spinach, berries, and walnuts.

[Jacqui_D]

If you are insulin resistant, then what you eat matters as much as how much you eat. If you are IR, you can cut calories all you want, and until you start eating the right kinds of foods (whole foods, proteins, complex carbs, etc.), you're going to see slow progress.

[Delphi]

My first go around I didn't so much diet as I just watched my calorie intake. However, eventually I gained it all back. I'd definitely say it's a balance of both.